Peet Joubert together with wife Sonja and daughters Megan (standing) and Carmen (seated) pose alongside the huge pumpkin. Photo: Supplied (Centurion Rekord).
A Centurion resident has grown the largest pumpkin in South Africa weighing in at 613kg, Centurion Rekord reports.
The behemoth pumpkin beat the South African record at the 57th annual Walkerville Agricultural Show on Saturday.
It had been growing from a seed for the past six months.
The seed was first planted by owner Peet Joubert in a greenhouse at his The Reeds home in October of last year.
“I replanted it about two weeks later,” said Joubert.
“From there I just exposed it to heat and light. But in the end the hard work we put into growing it paid off!”
According to Joubert it isn’t just planting a seed and leaving it to grow.
He said he spent on average two hours a day on “training” the pumpkin and providing it with fertiliser.
“In December I spent about five hours a day on the pumpkin,” he said.
“So it really is a lot of work that goes into growing the pumpkin and getting it to this size.”
Joubert said he would be attending a second competition this coming weekend with another pumpkin he has grown but doesn’t expect it to be as big.
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“We use charts and measurements to estimate the sizes. Still, I do think the pumpkin should be the largest at that competition as well.”
“The organisers will keep half of the seeds and return the rest to me,” he said.
“The pumpkin itself will be used to feed the hungry. So it isn’t wasted in the end.”
Joubert grows his pumpkins in his yard at his home in The Reeds where he has been staying for the past three years.
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